Another birthday celebration means I'm still here

Saturday

Jan 26, 2013 at 12:01 AM

Birthdays just aren't as much fun the older you become — except for the fact they indicate you're still alive and kicking.

Chad Killebrew

Birthdays just aren't as much fun the older you become — except for the fact they indicate you're still alive and kicking.Thursday saw me turn another year older. I realized recently that I'm about to enter my late 40s instead of my mid 40s, with 50 bearing down on me. But I keep repeating the wise advice I've heard others share: Age is simply a state of mind. The number isn't really that important.But the younger birthdays definitely claim the status as the momentous ones: 10, which a child turns double digits; 13, when they become a teenager; 16, when they gain their driver's license; 18, when the nation bestows voting rights; and 21, which some celebrate as the legal drinking age.I learned that even 25 holds special significance. My wife and I were 24 when we went on our honeymoon. We had reserved a rental car for our trip to New England. However, when we arrived in Boston to rent it, we learned most rental companies won't do business with anyone under 25.Even as I've grown older and hit the milestone birthdays — 30 and 40 — I've handled them fairly well. I did have a period about 10 years ago where I suddenly felt like life was sprinting past. I consoled myself that my children were still young, which in turn kept me young.That line of thinking doesn't work anymore, as I now share my home with a junior in high school who's beginning to look at college options and an eighth-grader who's almost as tall as I am. But thankfully, I've overcome my feelings of life rushing by and aim to enjoy this present stage.Folks react to birthdays in different ways. Some like to milk them for all they're worth, and I must confess I fall into this camp. Due to an extremely busy week for our family, my birthday observances have been spread out: a special breakfast Monday, a dinner at a restaurant Tuesday, lunch with coworkers and my wife Thursday, the day I opened presents, and my birthday cake this weekend.My wife called it a celebration of my birth week, a phrase to which I immediately warmed.I also like some surprises on my birthday. A coworker came to my office door singing a birthday song from Alfalfa on "Little Rascals." In addition to presents I requested, my wife presented me with an orange peeler. I had made an offhanded remark recently about my desire for such a device, to avoid using my fingernails to peel oranges, mandarins and similar fruit.All of us probably have special birthday gifts that stick out in our minds from years gone by. I recall receiving a telephone when I was a teenager (I think it was when I turned 16). I didn't receive my own line, as some friends had, but Dad did install a phone jack in my bedroom, so I could talk in privacy.That gift seems very quaint and old-fashioned in this day of cell phones that teens and even preteens now own.Technology also multiples the birthday greetings one receives. Facebook alerts users to which of their friends have birthdays on specific days. So a birthday brings numerous well-wishes, which is sure to brighten the day.Some employers grant a day off on a person's birthday, but that's not the case here. So Thursday was a normal workday, although the birthday lunch was certainly a special treat. And our family's various activities and commitments don't observe birthdays, either, which is the reason I traveled from work to Ledford Middle School for a basketball game, and then left there for Davidson County Community College and the Quiz Bowl.Last year I made a deliberate effort to note some of the special things that happened on my birthday. I recall seeing someone dressed as a Chick-fil-A mascot waving to passing motorists when I took my son to soccer practice in Greensboro. I continued that practice this year, and my list included a call from my parents, lunch, the academic competition and "Little Rascals" song.I almost saw wintry precipitation on my birthday this year, if the storm that moved through Friday had been a day earlier. That would definitely have made my list of significant things that took place on the day when I celebrate my birth.Chad Killebrew is executive editor of The Dispatch. He can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 215, or at chad.killebrew@the-dispatch.com.

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